And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. Ephesians 4:32
On December 12, 1933, the Toronto Maple Leafs visited the Boston Garden for an NHL game against the home-standing Boston Bruins. What no doubt seemed like a typical night to the players involved and fans in attendance would prove to be anything but. It would be a life-changing night for some involved, and the beginning of a chain of events that reveal one of the greatest human examples of forgiveness I have ever heard of.
In my opinion, Bruins defenseman Eddie Shore was the best player of the 1930s, and his four Hart trophies from that decade support that. As great a player as he was, he had a temper as big as his talent, and today he is as well known for that temper as anything else. It was that temper that would lead to the near tragedy that took place on that December night.
Shore's anger was triggered after he was checked by Toronto's top defenseman, King Clancy, as the former charged up the ice. The hit dazed Shore and threw him into a rage. Immediately, he decided to get his revenge. Setting his sights on a man he believed to be Clancy, Shore charged at the player and hit him from behind. His target fell to the ice and struck his head. Little did he know, he had not hit King Clancy, but rather star right winger Ace Bailey.
Upon witnessing the incident, Maple Leafs defenseman Red Horner, who had a temper to match Shore's, raced over to Shore demanding to know what he was thinking. Saying nothing, and feeling satisfied with his actions, still thinking he had hit Clancy, Shore said nothing and simply smiled. Needless to say, the response infuriated Horner who knocked Shore out cold with a single punch.
Shore's injury required a few stitches, but was nowhere near as severe as Bailey's, whose skull was fractured by the force of the impact when he hit the ice. When he woke up, Shore was informed about what had happened, and hearing that he had hurt Bailey, and that his victim might die, he asked for permission to go to the Maple Leafs' locker room to apologize.
When Shore arrived in the locker room, he found that Bailey had regained consciousness. Upon receiving Shore's apology, Bailey, who was lying in the locker room, expecting to die responded with an amazing level of grace and forgiveness by saying, "It's all part of the game," before losing consciousness again.
Bailey was rushed to a hospital where doctors began surgery to try to save his life. Even with the surgery, his injuries were so severe that doctors gave him only hours to live. Since Shore's deliberate actions had sent Shore to the edge of death, Boston homicide detectives announced that they intended to charge Shore with manslaughter in the event of Bailey's death. Bailey survived beyond the hours that his doctors expected him to live, but even after that, his life hung in the balance. Shore, meanwhile was suspended indefinitely by league president Frank Calder, and would eventually miss 16 games as a result.
In fact, Bailey would teeter between life and death for a month. During that time, Shore was forbidden to visit Bailey in the hospital, though Bruins manager Art Ross was able to do so. When Ross visited, Bailey reiterated that he did not hold Shore responsible for the incident and did not believe that Shore had intentionally injured him.
Against all odds, Bailey survived, but it was clear that his hockey career was over. Since a hockey career wasn't a high paying career in the 1930s by any stretch of the imagination, Bailey was far from being set for life. As a result, Calder decided to put on an all-star game which would serve as a benefit for Bailey and his family. Bailey's Maple Leafs teammates would face off against a collection of all-stars -- two from each of the other teams -- on Valentine's Day, 1934 in Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens. Unsurprisingly, one of the selections from the Bruins was none other than Eddie Shore. Lester Patrick, head coach of the New York Rangers was chosen to coach the all-star team.
Before the game, there was a ceremony in which the all-stars received their jerseys for the game from Calder, Patrick, and Bailey. The players came forward in numerical order. Number one was Chicago Black Hawks goaltender Charlie Gardiner. Number two was Eddie Shore. Over 14,000 fans in attendance became dead silent when they saw Shore skating toward Bailey. Shore was also nervous about the meeting. When Shore arrived, Bailey extended his arm and shook hands with Shore, and the pair received a roar of approval from the crowd. So far from being booed as he expected, Shore found that he was cheered when he would rush the puck following Bailey's gesture.
Not one of us is capable of the level of forgiveness that we receive from God, but Ace Bailey came about as close as anyone could in his exchanges with Eddie Shore. I believe his willingness to forgive can bring the forgiveness of God to life as well as demonstrate the kind of forgiveness that we should show to others.
I don't believe that most people live their lives intending to offend God, and yet that's just what each and every one of us do with our sin. The consequences for our sin are so great that they sent Jesus Christ to a cross. Yet, while He was dying for crimes He did not commit, he prayed, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." Beyond that, if we will but turn to Him and accept His grace, He will receive us with opened arms and restore the fellowship that we lost in the fall.
With that in mind, how can we withhold forgiveness from others? The text verse teaches us that we are to forgive others because Jesus Christ has forgiven us. Our salvation can come from nothing other than the blood that He shed in our stead, for our crimes, on a cross that should have been ours. Because of that, we owe Him all. The least we can do is be willing to give our forgiveness to others after He did the same for us.
True forgiveness does not hold offenses from the past over the head of the guilty party. Just as God's forgiveness doesn't remember our sins, we should also be willing to let the wounds of the past remain in the past. We can learn a lot from Ace Bailey. The forgiveness he showed Eddie Shore is a beautiful picture of God's forgiveness for us, and a great example of the forgiveness that we should show to others.
In my opinion, Bruins defenseman Eddie Shore was the best player of the 1930s, and his four Hart trophies from that decade support that. As great a player as he was, he had a temper as big as his talent, and today he is as well known for that temper as anything else. It was that temper that would lead to the near tragedy that took place on that December night.
Shore's anger was triggered after he was checked by Toronto's top defenseman, King Clancy, as the former charged up the ice. The hit dazed Shore and threw him into a rage. Immediately, he decided to get his revenge. Setting his sights on a man he believed to be Clancy, Shore charged at the player and hit him from behind. His target fell to the ice and struck his head. Little did he know, he had not hit King Clancy, but rather star right winger Ace Bailey.
Upon witnessing the incident, Maple Leafs defenseman Red Horner, who had a temper to match Shore's, raced over to Shore demanding to know what he was thinking. Saying nothing, and feeling satisfied with his actions, still thinking he had hit Clancy, Shore said nothing and simply smiled. Needless to say, the response infuriated Horner who knocked Shore out cold with a single punch.
Shore's injury required a few stitches, but was nowhere near as severe as Bailey's, whose skull was fractured by the force of the impact when he hit the ice. When he woke up, Shore was informed about what had happened, and hearing that he had hurt Bailey, and that his victim might die, he asked for permission to go to the Maple Leafs' locker room to apologize.
When Shore arrived in the locker room, he found that Bailey had regained consciousness. Upon receiving Shore's apology, Bailey, who was lying in the locker room, expecting to die responded with an amazing level of grace and forgiveness by saying, "It's all part of the game," before losing consciousness again.
Bailey was rushed to a hospital where doctors began surgery to try to save his life. Even with the surgery, his injuries were so severe that doctors gave him only hours to live. Since Shore's deliberate actions had sent Shore to the edge of death, Boston homicide detectives announced that they intended to charge Shore with manslaughter in the event of Bailey's death. Bailey survived beyond the hours that his doctors expected him to live, but even after that, his life hung in the balance. Shore, meanwhile was suspended indefinitely by league president Frank Calder, and would eventually miss 16 games as a result.
In fact, Bailey would teeter between life and death for a month. During that time, Shore was forbidden to visit Bailey in the hospital, though Bruins manager Art Ross was able to do so. When Ross visited, Bailey reiterated that he did not hold Shore responsible for the incident and did not believe that Shore had intentionally injured him.
Against all odds, Bailey survived, but it was clear that his hockey career was over. Since a hockey career wasn't a high paying career in the 1930s by any stretch of the imagination, Bailey was far from being set for life. As a result, Calder decided to put on an all-star game which would serve as a benefit for Bailey and his family. Bailey's Maple Leafs teammates would face off against a collection of all-stars -- two from each of the other teams -- on Valentine's Day, 1934 in Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens. Unsurprisingly, one of the selections from the Bruins was none other than Eddie Shore. Lester Patrick, head coach of the New York Rangers was chosen to coach the all-star team.
Before the game, there was a ceremony in which the all-stars received their jerseys for the game from Calder, Patrick, and Bailey. The players came forward in numerical order. Number one was Chicago Black Hawks goaltender Charlie Gardiner. Number two was Eddie Shore. Over 14,000 fans in attendance became dead silent when they saw Shore skating toward Bailey. Shore was also nervous about the meeting. When Shore arrived, Bailey extended his arm and shook hands with Shore, and the pair received a roar of approval from the crowd. So far from being booed as he expected, Shore found that he was cheered when he would rush the puck following Bailey's gesture.
Not one of us is capable of the level of forgiveness that we receive from God, but Ace Bailey came about as close as anyone could in his exchanges with Eddie Shore. I believe his willingness to forgive can bring the forgiveness of God to life as well as demonstrate the kind of forgiveness that we should show to others.
I don't believe that most people live their lives intending to offend God, and yet that's just what each and every one of us do with our sin. The consequences for our sin are so great that they sent Jesus Christ to a cross. Yet, while He was dying for crimes He did not commit, he prayed, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." Beyond that, if we will but turn to Him and accept His grace, He will receive us with opened arms and restore the fellowship that we lost in the fall.
With that in mind, how can we withhold forgiveness from others? The text verse teaches us that we are to forgive others because Jesus Christ has forgiven us. Our salvation can come from nothing other than the blood that He shed in our stead, for our crimes, on a cross that should have been ours. Because of that, we owe Him all. The least we can do is be willing to give our forgiveness to others after He did the same for us.
True forgiveness does not hold offenses from the past over the head of the guilty party. Just as God's forgiveness doesn't remember our sins, we should also be willing to let the wounds of the past remain in the past. We can learn a lot from Ace Bailey. The forgiveness he showed Eddie Shore is a beautiful picture of God's forgiveness for us, and a great example of the forgiveness that we should show to others.
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